Conventionally, a slider that includes an automatic stopper is used in many cases as a slider for a slide fastener. In the slider that includes the automatic stopper, if a pull tab that slides a slider body to couple and release tooth rows of a fastener chain is operated with respect to the slider body, the movement of the slider body can be stopped and a movement stop state of the slider body can be released.
By operating the pull tab, a claw part of the spring body made of a long and minute elastic metal plate member can be engaged with a part of the tooth rows of the fastener chain by the biasing force of the spring body and the movement of the slider can be stopped. If the biasing force of the spring body with respect to the claw part is released by operating the pull tab, the movement stop state of the slider can be released.
As an example of a structure of the slider with the automatic stopper of the above type, a slider for a slide fastener with an automatic stopper (refer to Patent Document 1) that is previously suggested by the present applicant is known.
In the slider disclosed in Patent Document 1, a claw part of a spring body can be engaged with a part of tooth rows of a fastener chain by the biasing force of a spring piece provided in the spring body. In addition, a state where the claw part is engaged with the part of the tooth rows of the fastener chain is maintained by the biasing force of the spring piece, as long as the spring body is not lifted against the biasing force of the spring piece.
If the pull tab is lifted forward or pulls the pull tab backward with a hand, the spring body can be lifted against the biasing force from the spring piece, and the claw part of the spring body can be separated from the tooth rows of the fastener chain. Therefore, the slider can be freely slid.
If the pull tab lifted forward or pulled backward is released, the claw part is automatically inserted again between the tooth rows of the fastener chain by the biasing force from the spring piece, and the slider can be stopped.
Meanwhile, the spring body disclosed in Patent Document 1 is made of a metallic material such as a copper alloy having strong spring stiffness or stainless steel. A segment is partially cut from a long plate member having a predetermined sectional shape such that a part of the segment remains, and the spring body that includes the spring piece can be manufactured. However, since the spring body is configured as a small piece with the magnitude of about several millimeters, the width and the length of the spring body that is blanked along an outer end edge of the molding material further decrease.
For this reason, in the slider according to the related art disclosed in Patent Document 1, various problems to be described below are generated. For example, when the spring body is formed of the above-described metallic material having high toughness, blanking working or bending working is performed with respect to a very small component such as the spring piece. For this reason, cracking may be generated with respect to the metallic material or a blade of a blanking punch may be worn early during the blanking working or the bending working.
That is, if the excessive force is applied to a fore-end of the spring piece, the spring piece breaks or cracks.
For this reason, it is difficult to improve working precision with respect to the fore-end of the spring piece and thereby to expect form stability, and there is a limit to achieve mass production of spring body products with high precision.
In order to resolve the conventional problems, the present applicant has improved the configuration of a spring body for a slide fastener as a slider, and as a result, suggested a slide fastener mounted with a spring body for a slider disclosed in Patent Document 2. In the slider that is disclosed in Patent Document 2, a material cost or a manufacturing cost that is needed to manufacture the spring body can be reduced, and stable and excellent productivity can be achieved when the spring body is manufactured. Further, the slider has a simple structure and a superior exterior design, which is achieved at low cost, and the slider ensures a stable excellent automatic stop function and is realized in a compact size.
FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of the slider disclosed in Patent Document 2 as a conventional example of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, a pull-tab retainer 51 is made of a long thin plate member. In anterior and posterior portions of a flat upper wall part 52, anterior and posterior wall parts 53 and 54 are formed to be smoothly curved with the same curvature, respectively. The pull-tab retainer 51 is configured as a cover body that has a substantially lateral C-shape in side view.
In anterior and posterior portions of a top surface of a slider body 60, an anterior mounting post 61 and a posterior mounting post 62 stand, respectively. In interlocked parts (not shown in the drawings) that are formed in the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62, engagement pieces (not shown in the drawings) that are formed in internal faces of fore-ends of the anterior and posterior wall parts 53 and 54 in the upper wall part 52 can be elastically engaged. Further, side-to-side winglike pieces 55 and 55 having the large width that covers and shields a part of a space between the anterior mounting post 61 and the posterior mounting post 62 are curved from the upper wall part 52 and protrude downward. In the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62, a pair of left and right support walls 61a and 62a is provided, respectively. The above description relates to the schematic structure of the slider 50 that is disclosed in Patent Document 2.
Meanwhile, in the configuration of the slider 50 described in Patent Document 2, the exterior shape based on the pull-tab retainer 51 and the configuration that prevents the pull-tab retainer 51 from moving in the side-to-side direction by an action of the external force are technologically associated with the present invention.
Thus, the internal structure of the slider 50 that is described in Patent Document 2 will not be described, and the exterior shape based on the pull-tab retainer 51 and the configuration that prevents the pull-tab retainer 51 from moving in the anteroposterior side-to-side directions by the external force will be described.
As shown in FIG. 9, if engagement pieces (not shown in the drawings) of the pull-tab retainer 51 are elastically engaged with interlocked parts (not shown in the drawings) of the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62, the pull-tab retainer 51 is engaged with the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62 and is mounted on the slider body. The pull-tab retainer 51 can be fitted between opposing faces of the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62 and can be supported. The upper wall part 52 and the anterior and posterior wall parts 53 and 54 of the pull-tab retainer 51 and the support walls 61a and 62a can be disposed such that the top surfaces thereof are flush with each other.
By this configuration, the pull-tab retainer 51 can be configured to have the minimum thickness, and the slider 50 can be configured to be compact and thin. The slider 50 that has an excellent exterior design and a high commodity value can be obtained.
In the anterior mounting post 61 and the posterior mounting post 62 that stand in the anterior and posterior portions of the top surface of the slider body 60, a pair of protrusions 61b and 62b that face toward the inner side are formed, respectively. In a ridge line part (angular part) between the pair of side-to-side winglike pieces 55 and the upper wall part 52 provided in the pull-tab retainer 51, missing parts 56a and 56b are formed. The missing parts 56a and 56b are configured as stepped parts that are recessed inward from both linear side end faces in the side-to-side winglike piece 55 to the inner side.
If the pair of protrusions 61b and 62b are fitted and fasten with the missing parts 56a and 56b, respectively, the pull-tab retainer 51 can be prevented from moving in the anteroposterior side-to-side directions due to the action of the external force.
By the above-described structure of the slider 50, the pull-tab retainer 51 does not swing against the external force in the anteroposterior side-to-side directions, and the pull-tab retainer 51 can be firmly and surely mounted in the anterior and posterior mounting posts 61 and 62. A spring piece of the spring body (not shown in the drawings) disposed between the pull-tab retainer 51 and the slider body 60 can be smoothly and surely held. Accordingly, a quality of the slider 50 for the slide fastener with the automatic stopper can be stably ensured over a long period.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-127313    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-344313